DFS Alerts
Injury Has Created Opportunity For Me
With the injury to Mike Conley, Mario Chalmers has really taken advantage of the opportunity at hand. He’s played at least 28 minutes in three straight games, and has over 30 fantasy points in back-to-back games. In 180 minutes without Conley on the floor and Gasol on the floor, Chalmers has a 20.4% usage rate and he’s averaging .97 fantasy points per minute. At that production, he’s looking like a great value play on a 14-game NBA slate.
I Continue To Have A High Floor
With the highest implied total on the night, I think it’s a mistake not to look at this game. Carroll went for 37 DraftKings points in this game earlier this season, and has a lot of upside on the defensive side of the ball here. LeBron is turning the ball over the fourth most per game this season, and Carroll had four steals in the game earlier this season. Carroll is a high floor option, and I think he has the upside to win GPPs tonight.
A Breakout Game in the Making?
Elfrid Payton has been struggling with injuries and ineffectiveness for much of the year, but this could be a sneaky spot for a breakout. The minutes should be there as long as this game stays competitive, and the Wolves have struggled a bit against point guards this season. With Payton’s DFS price tag dipping to very affordable levels, this is a great buy low spot. He is a strong tournament option that will go largely ignored on a full slate of games.
GPP Upside Awaits
The Hawks will be a little thinner in the frontcourt tonight, as Mike Muscala is out along with recent coaching favorite Luke Babbitt. With those two players sidelined, there should (theoretically) be a few more minutes available for John Collins. The production has not been an issue this year when he has been on the court, as Collins has been a point per minute monster. The issue is the minutes and the occasional foul trouble. I’m willing to take that chance in GPPs, especially with the thinned out depth this evening. Fire up Collins as an elite tournament option.
Ready for Extra Minutes?
With Greg Monroe off to Phoenix and John Henson ruled out for tonight, Jason Kidd has almost no choice but to finally give Thon Maker some extended run. Maker is essentially priced at the minimum, and tonight’s matchup is a favorable one against the Suns. You need some punt plays on this large slate in order to fit in the stud plays, and Maker provides the most reliable minutes that you will find for a dirt cheap price tag. A 25-30 fantasy point performance is very much in play, and that will pay off his price tag without a problem.
Revenge!!!
This could be the revenge spot of all revenge spots. Eric Bledsoe wasn’t happy in Phoenix, and you know he has had this game circled on his calendar ever since the trade. He wants to have a big game tonight. Even if you ignore the revenge angle, Bledsoe is still a very strong play in a favorable matchup. His price tag remains solidly in the mid range, and he logged 35 minutes the other night. This game should go small at times, especially since the Bucks will be missing John Henson. Fire up Bledsoe as a great point per dollar option.
Patrick Beverley (knee) ruled out Wednesday, will be "out for awhile"
Beverley has been ruled out and won’t suit up for tonight’s game against the Atlanta Hawks due to a lingering knee issue. In fact, Beverley has already been sent back home to Los Angeles and appears likely to be sidelined for a significant period of time. Meanwhile, Danilo Gallinari will also be unavailable for the eighth straight game due to a strained left glute and is still expected to be out at least another week. The absence of Beverley should allow Sindarius Thornwell to re-enter the Clippers starting lineup but he still possesses a low floor and ceiling combo despite his expected minute workload. This means that Lou Williams will continue to come off the bench in a sixth-man role, though is only a site-specific play at $5400 on FanDuel for Wednesday’s slate. With Beverley and Gallinari off the court this season, Blake Griffin and Austin Rivers have been the main beneficiaries from a usage standpoint, as each player owns at least a +2.2% usage rate differential in the aforementioned scenario, but neither has really capitalized in terms of per minute production to this point.
As reported by: Brad Turner via Twitter
Paul Millsap (left wrist) will undergo surgery, out indefinitely
Millsap will undergo surgery on his left wrist and will be sidelined indefinitely, according to The Vertical’s Shams Charania and his sources, but early reports are putting the timetable for Millsap’s return at possibly 3 months. This is obviously a huge loss for an up and coming Denver Nuggets squad that will likely now attempt to fill Millsap’s massive void with a committee of players at power forward. In Monday’s contest, Kenneth Faried drew the start but played just under 20 minutes, essentially the same as Trey Lyles, while Juancho Hernangomez absorbed 17 minutes of action filling at both the small forward and power forward spots. However, it is important to remember that Wilson Chandler also missed last night’s game, so his return will likely eat into the playing time of Hernangomez and Lyles, while Faried should have the first crack at securing the starting power forward role moving forward. Still, head coach Mike Malone will likely continue to roll with more small-ball lineups in Millsap’s absence, making Will Barton and Gary Harris sneaky beneficiaries as well, along with Chandler, who could see more time at power forward.
As reported by: Shams Charania via Twitter Trevor Booker (ankle sprain) questionable for Wednesday
Booker has officially been listed as questionable on the Brooklyn Nets’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers’ with a sprained right ankle he sustained in Sunday’s loss. Booker was held out of the team’s practice on Tuesday and, according to head coach Kenny Atkinson, will be considered day-to-day moving forward, meaning we should receive an update following the Nets’ shootaround on Wednesday morning. Tyler Zeller started the second half in Booker’s place on Monday and should be the leading candidate to start if Booker is eventually ruled out, while Quincy Acy and Jarrett Allen should also mix in the rotation at center as well. The player to hone in on if Booker is ultimately unavailable is Allen Crabbe, as he has really seen his usage and production skyrocket since Atkinson made a change to his starting lineup last week, evidenced by a +5.4% usage rate differential with Booker, D’Angelo Russell, and Jeremy Lin off the floor this season. Not only is he seeing the extra usage, but Crabbe has also averaged 32 minutes of playing time over the course of the Nets last three games, a rarity for Nets players in recent years with Atkinson at the helm.
As reported by: Brian Lewis via Twitter Luke Babbitt (back) and Mike Muscala (ankle) ruled out for Wednesday
Babbitt and Muscala have both been ruled out and won’t suit up for tomorrow’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers due to lower back spasms and a sprained left ankle, respectively. The only other player on the Atlanta Hawks’ injury report is Isaiah Taylor, who will remain with an eye injury, but head coach Mike Budenholzer will still be left with a significant void to fill at power forward with two of his main rotation pieces sidelined. John Collins started the second half of Monday’s loss for the injured Babbitt so one would have to figure that he has the inside track at starting on Wednesday night. Tyler Cavanaugh had been ahead of Ersan Ilyasova in the Hawks rotation up until Monday’s contest and saw just two minutes of playing time compared to Ilyasova’s seven. So, needless to say, unless one of the two ends up starting, they can be avoided in daily fantasy formats on Wednesday’s slate.
As reported by: the Atlanta Hawks via Twitter Other tagged players: Mike Muscala Kevin Durant (ankle sprain) questionable for Wednesday
Durant has been listed as questionable on the Golden State Warriors’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to a sprained left ankle that has already forced him to miss one game. Andre Iguodala was originally considered the leading candidate to enter the starting lineup on Sunday and had done so in the only other game Durant missed this season. However, head coach Steve Kerr opted to give Omri Casspi the starting nod in an effort to manage Iguodala’s minutes since the Warriors are on the second night of a road back-to-back. That said, if Durant is unavailable again, Iguodala should be expected to draw the start at small forward with Golden State coming into this game on two full days of rest, while Casspi, Patrick McCaw, and Nick Young should see a slight uptick in minutes to pick up the slack. With Durant off the court this season, Stephen Curry has been the clear beneficiary in terms of usage and production, as he owns a +9.7% usage rate differential in the aforementioned scenario while averaging an absurd 1.95 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.86 fantasy points per minute on FanDuel.
As reported by: Anthony Slater via Twitter Norman Powell (hip flexor) questionable for Wednesday
Powell has officially been upgraded to questionable on the Toronto Raptors’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the New York Knicks with a right hip flexor that has already forced him to miss four consecutive games. Delon Wright is still dealing with a dislocated right shoulder that has kept him sidelined for two straight games but there’s no update on his status on Wednesday, though he does seem unlikely to suit up. If Powell is eventually ruled out, OG Anunoby will draw the start at small forward for the fifth time in as many games with head coach Dwane Casey seemingly preferring to keep C.J. Miles as a primary scoring option in the second unit. With Powell off the floor this season, DeMar DeRozan continues to lead the Raptors’ starting five with a 37.1% usage rate, good for a +3.7% differential, while averaging an elite 1.35 fantasy points per minute, putting him firmly in play for Wednesday’s slate if Powell is ultimately unavailable.
As reported by: Eric Koreen via Twitter Tyreke Evans (right shoulder) will play Monday
Evans has been cleared to play and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers after previously being listed as questionable on the Memphis Grizzlies’ injury report with a right shoulder injury. Meanwhile, Brandan Wright and Wayne Selden were already ruled out in advance with a right groin injury and a right quad injury, respectively. The Grizzlies are still without Mike Conley for the next couple of weeks, so Evans will continue to take on an even larger role in both the second and first units, just as he has in the most recent games with Conley sidelined. In fact, in that same timespan, Evans has averaged almost 31 minutes per game and outperformed his salary-based expectations relatively consistently, though his salary has now risen to unexplored territory, limiting his overall upside.
As reported by: Casey Holdahl via Twitter John Wall (sore knee) will play without a minute restriction Monday
Wall has been cleared to play and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks after previously being listed as questionable on the Washington Wizards’ game notes with a sore left knee that had forced him to miss one game. Wall won’t be subject to a minute restriction in his return from a one-game absence, according to head coach Scott Brooks, but is also not expected to see minutes in the upper-30s as Wall does on occasion. His return will send Tim Frazier back to the bench to resume his normal backup point guard role, who continues to perform well when given the opportunity and is coming off a performance where he easily exceeded salary-based expectations in 35 minutes of action filling in for Wall as the starting point guard.
As reported by: Chris Miller via Twitter Joel Embiid (sore knee) will play Monday
Embiid has been made available to play following pregame warmups and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Utah Jazz after previously being listed as questionable on the Philadelphia 76ers’ injury report with left knee soreness. This news does not come as a surprise as Embiid told reporters following shootaround that he planned to play Monday night. However, both Amir Johnson and Richaun Holmes can now be removed from consideration for all daily fantasy formats. Additionally, Jerryd Bayless will be available to play tonight, as expected, after missing seven consecutive games with left wrist discomfort. The Sixers are still without Markelle Fultz, Justin Anderson, and Nik Stauskas, so the return of Bayless to the rotation is certainly a much-needed addition. Head coach Brett Brown will continue to utilize the same starting lineup with Dario Saric at power forward, meaning Bayless will come off the bench in his return, but his presence in the rotation will definitely eat into the playing time of T.J. McConnell off the bench, and to a lesser extent, J.J. Redick at the shooting guard spot.
As reported by: Molly Sullivan via Twitter